The purpose of compulsory military service is the training of necessary reserve units for the defence of Estonia and the creation of the prerequisite required for entry into professional military service.

Acquired during the course of compulsory military service are the primary principles of national defence and learning to operate as a single team.


Call-up for Compulsory Military Service

Estonian citizens, who are between the ages of 18-27 and have been deemed fit to serve in active service by a medical committee, are called-up for compulsory military service. Called-up for compulsory military service are young men with at least a basic education.

The Defence Resources Agency organises the call-up for compulsory military service.

With an advance call-up, conscripts are called into service for positions which require 11 months of service (specialists, non-commissioned officers and reserve platoon commanders). On the basis of a general call-up, the rank and file of a unit are trained over the course of eight months. Even so, those conscripts who were part of the general call-up have the opportunity to take part in junior non-commissioned officer and reserve platoon commander courses.


Duration of Compulsory Military Service

The duration of compulsory military service is frequently determined depending on the vocation of the person eligible to be drafted for contractual service. Those who arrive in the service in January and June, as a rule, serve 11 months, while those who arrive in April and October serve 8 months.

The final duration of service is determined by the position which the soldier is assigned. A member of the Defence Forces is assigned a position after having completed soldier’s (seamen’s) basic training. A conscript is appointed to a position and freed from that position by a directive in the interests of the service.


Compulsory Military Service

During the course of compulsory military service, a number of skills required for civilian life are acquired – first aid courses, topography, communication and information technology, environmental and civil protection, planning of time and the maintaining of order and cleanliness.

Junior non-commissioned officers or reserve platoon commanders receive valuable management experience. Those having completed paramedic courses during the course of compulsory military service will later be able to work as paramedics; those having completed motor vehicle driver courses will receive CE or DE category driving licenses.

Completing compulsory military service gives one the opportunity to apply to the Estonian National Defence College, the graduates of which enter service in the Defence Forces as officers. There is also the opportunity to enter into service as a professional member of the Defence Forces in the Scouts Battalion or in some other military unit.

At the end of compulsory military service, the requirement of the performance of national defence duties as a reservist in your unit, the Defence Forces or professional member of the Defence Forces continues.